posted
I have been going through something for the past four years. I want to make sure I am not the only one.
I am 39 and post menapausal. I had a TVH/Oopherectomy at 27 for severe stage2 Endometriosis. I have been on hormones for going on 13yrs now.
All that aside. My sex drive just took a nose dive in 04. Which consiquently coinsided with the night sweats. They started then as well.
Now I have NO desire for anything! It is frustrating me because I was never like that before. I talked to the GYN and they were NO help.
I know my other half says he understands. Yet, I feel like unless you are actually going through this...you don't. We are already seeing a counselor as it is. I am not sure how he would take it, if If I slept in another room. Considering the fact that the intamacy is gone now. The sexual acspect that is.
They just ran the typical TSH, free T-3 and T-4. I am wondering if my andrenals and cortisal levels are all messed up.
I am cold ALL the time, more thirsty than usual and I also have bladder issues. (ICS) I've also put on nearly 7 lbs just since Feb. I feel fat, sluggish and BLOATED!
I used to be able to just go in my closet and pick out anything. Put it on and I was good to go. That is NOT the case anymore. My boobs are even bigger! Shirts are now getting tight. Nothing seems to fit anymore.
HELP! Am I the only one feeling this way??? Will I eventually get my sex drive once the Lyme goes away? Or if, I get meds for the horomes I am lacking? I feel frustrated and alone.
Posts: 109 | From San Antonio,Tx | Registered: May 2008
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tailz
Unregistered
posted
I had my uterus and my left ovary removed back in 2001, I believe it was, at the age of 36, due to endometriosis and adhesions. My right ovary remains.
Well, actually, that isn't entirely true - they had found endometriosis and adhesions on a diagnostic LEEP a couple years prior to this and removed the tissue, but found nothing at all during my hysterectomy that would explain my pain. Regardless, the pelvic pain was so incredibly intense, I went ahead with the surgery.
Following my hysterectomy, my sex drive plummited. They checked my free testosterone, and it was low, so the GYN I was seeing put me on testosterone ointment. My sex drive came back almost overnight, but unfortunately, I began to grow a mustache after about a month or two, so the medication was obviously stopped.
Luckily, my sex drive returned for a good many years following the short-term testosterone treatment, and most of the pelvic pain had diminished.
Within the last several years, however, at the age of 41, I ended up menopausal, though this diagnosis was reversed a couple of months later.
A couple of months ago, however, I had my LLMD recheck my hormones (I'm 43 now), and though my FSH and LH were both high and in menopausal range, my estrogen was still within normal range (but low end normal)?
I just happened to have started rifampin though, along with minocycline and metronidazole, and with it, I began having pain in my remaining ovary, so now I have to wonder if the medication caused my second 'menopause'?
I also lost my sex drive during this time period (again). Obviously, without a period, I don't really know when I'm in 'menopause' and when I'm not.
My sex drive has returned somewhat over the last several weeks, but who knows? One thing I have noticed is that my female organs seem to all be shrunken in and they have been this way for several years now. The only difference this time around is I haven't lost my pubic hair.
I hope I didn't bore you with all the details here, but to make a long story short, I do not believe menopause is normal - definitely not so at such an early age.
And since I also suffer from severe Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity and found a connection between Lyme and chronic exposure to electromagnetic and microwave/radiowave fields, I would seriously get yourself a gaussmeter/electrosmog detector and measure your exposure.
For starters, recently, I had my LLMD check my 24-hour urine catecholamines and metanephrines, and though my urine came back okay, my plasma metanephrines came back elevated. Do I have an adrenal tumor? Pituitary tumor? All the more reason to get yourself a gaussmeter and STOP using your cell phone or cordless phone.
If your female hormones are shutting down, you are likely being overexposed to electromagnetic radiation, and Lyme is just one piece of a much bigger problem.
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NanaDubo
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14794
posted
You are not alone! I have not sex drive at all (except for rare occasions. No one has been able to help with this.
My LLND prescribed some bio-identical hormones which he said would do the trick and that "my husband better watch out".
There is something in them that makes my yeast problem even worse.
I understand how you feel. I have continued to lose weight which is kind of nice but I have been on the other end too and it's no fun to
have clothes that no longer fit. Wish I could be of more help but just wanted you to know, you are not alone.
NanaDubo
Posts: 1129 | From Maine | Registered: Feb 2008
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disturbedme
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 12346
posted
No, this is a symptom of lyme and co and it's not uncommon.
I'm only 24 and newly wed and have no sex drive either (except rarely)... which worries me big time since my husband and I did just get married one and a half years ago, will be two years in November. He says he understands, etc., but I know what you mean.
It's not a good thing especially when a young couple just get married and already one of them has no sex drive.
-------------------- One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar. ~ Helen Keller
My Lyme Story Posts: 2965 | From Land of Confusion (bitten in KS, moved to PA, now living in MD) | Registered: Jun 2007
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Peacesoul
Unregistered
posted
My sex drive went from 10 to 1 in a short period of time. I've been ill for 14 yrs but always had a healthy sex drive. In April 07 when my symptoms got worse, I lost the drive.
I attribute my loss of sex drive to depression. The illnes, the treatment and my loss of ability gave me intense depression. Before I was dx, I was not depressed
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A long with the others, I have to tell ya; you're certainly not alone!!!
I have always had a very high sex drive. This was actually a problem believe it or not!!! My husband had very little sex drive!?? Go figure!??
Anyway, for about 6 or 7 months now, I have no sex drive at all! Although in my case, my guess is that my husband is happy about it!!! Hhmmmm! I had a 24 hour urine for hormones/minerals and everything is WAY out of wack!
I have also put on about 20 pounds this year---very depressing!!
I agree with the others in that my guess is that it's your hormones. Many times blood tests are not very reliable for hormone testing, as you're levels continuelly change through out the day. I would ask your LLMD, or an endocrinologist to do a 24 hour urine.
I say endocrinologist because it's not just estrogen, progesteron and testosteron! You have to look into the hypo-thalmius, pitutary, adrenal and thyroid and para-thyroid glands!
I know this is kind of tough to go through, but one good thing (if you're worried about your partner) is that woman can fake it!! While your waiting for testing and possible hormone treatment, you can still be intimate with him, right??
If we were men, this would really be hard because there's no way they can fake it!!
Good luck, and if you find a way NOT to put on weight, please let me know!
Take Care
Posts: 351 | From Georgia | Registered: Feb 2008
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posted
I'm 44 and had a total hysterectomy 8 years ago. Been on HRT ever since.
It's reassuring to know I'm not alone with this. I'm really struggling here.
It's like I have no desire for anything. My usual hobbies no longer interest me. I just feel like I'm in "auto pilot".
My husband also says he understands, but I know he hasn't a clue.
The funny thing here, is we both see the same doctor (internist) and he prescribed viagra for my husband at a time I had -0- drive. I asked him if he was insane ?!
He prescribed wellbutrin for me. Hasn't helped! Does anything work?? Posts: 18 | From Mount Airy Maryland | Registered: May 2008
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Keebler
Honored Contributor (25K+ posts)
Member # 12673
posted
-
I think it might be the body's way of preserving strength for the task at hand, healing. Maybe adrenal support would be of help.
If the adrenals can't expend energy, the rest of the body/brain gets the signal, too.
posted
My sex drive is ok, but between having chronic lyme and chronic yeast issues and horrid PMS/long periods our sex life is not what we would like it to be.
I feel like there is a lot of "societal pressure" for women to keep their men happy.
I think I got this idea from tv...I know I have been watching way too much tv the last couple months being housebound and all..
My husband says he will wait forever and this is actually true, but I still worry about it...
-------------------- "We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us" - e.m. forster Posts: 921 | From PA | Registered: Jan 2004
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lymebytes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11830
posted
I have had cortisol, and every thyroid test there is..I have zero sex drive.
I am in a lot of pain though...the best I can do is a hug.
I don't agree with everything the author says but there is a connection between Lyme & sex.
It's very painful to go through a diminishment of sexual activity. Sex can be a form of communication between 2 people. It helps to bond people.
There's alot of loss & psychological ramifications of a loss of desire. It effects both people in a relationship & the person suffering with this.
It can lead to low esteem, lack of interest in pursuing things in general, lack of creativity, etc.
I agree- this is very difficult. I'm sure many people get divorced or lose their relationships due to this.
This is another way Lyme affects us & I think it should be taken more seriously.
---
re: 1rosepedal - how can your doctor be so insensitive?
Posts: 7772 | From Northeast, again... | Registered: Oct 2006
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cantgiveupyet
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 8165
posted
my whole reproductive system is a mess, im on gyno, lets see i think 8 right now.
No sex drive here either, im 32. I know my testosterone was low on one test way back.
-------------------- "Say it straight simple and with a smile."
"Thus the task is, not so much to see what no one has seen yet, But to think what nobody has thought yet, About what everybody sees."
-Schopenhauer
pos babs, bart, igenex WB igm/igg Posts: 3156 | From Lyme limbo | Registered: Oct 2005
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tailz
Unregistered
posted
Just be careful with the testosterone. One or two months into it, I'd started growing a slight mustache, and my testosterone went from a low of something like maybe 16 to 708.
And no, I was not smearing it all over my body.
On the bright side, NO MAN ALIVE could have kept up with me or satisfied me back then. lol
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posted
Regarding the TSH, do you know what your doctor considers an appropriate level? I notice that a lot of women's docs don't inform them of their numbers and just say all is okay.
You may already know this, but most informed docs will say that a woman feels best when her TSH is at 1.0. I notice a HUGE difference in how I feel if my TSH slips just a little bit.
Also, have you taken an Iodine Sufficiency test? My doc had me take one when I started seeing him and I was low. I began taking Iodoral daily and am noticing a significant difference in how I feel. The thyroid is highly dependant on iodine.
All that said, my sex drive is not what I want it to be, but it certainly is BETTER. I notice that my sexual responsiveness is better as well.
Posts: 96 | From Ft. Worth, TX | Registered: May 2008
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Will I eventually get my sex drive once the Lyme goes away? Or if, I get meds for the horomes I am lacking? I feel frustrated and alone.
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